


The Murder of Crows

by Jude_Corp



Series: The Mewden's Universe [1]
Category: Inspired by Dungeons and Dragons - Fandom
Genre: F/F, F/M, Fun, Goblins, Kidnapping, Murder
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-10-03
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:01:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25643227
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jude_Corp/pseuds/Jude_Corp
Summary: Many, many years ago, an adventuring party formed to create the now infamous Murder of Crows. Many members became well known outside of The Nest. A few examples include;The Symbol of Evil, The Ghostly Traveler, Ludenoff The Wise, and The Clown.This is the story of how they formed, and their first adventure.So young...
Series: The Mewden's Universe [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1858978





	1. Chapter 1: A Crow's Gathering

**Author's Note:**

> I had fun with this, plus it'll be a lot easier to write since I've got a fuck ton of guidelines.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Crows have only just met and it seems that I've forgotten how much they went through only hours after meeting. 
> 
> They've only just begun, but the road that is paved for them by The Clown and The Symbol of Evil is long and abandoned. I don't enjoy seeing them suffer, but I must say that knowing where they end makes it easier to watch.
> 
> Oh- farewell Maiha! I will see you in a year or so? Good good, farewell. Tell your troubled child I said hello would you please?

Along the Ten Dust Trail in between towns, a wagon full of supplies went down, guarded by an adventuring party that had either stumbled along the wagon, or was paid to deliver it to a settlement by the name of Thyindres. 

Outside of the wagon at the front was Sliver Dvdee atop her horse. Her hair short and black, her skin a slight green, and her forehead rather large. She led the wagon along the trail diligently, keeping a close watch for danger.

Sliver wasn't the only adventurer outside, there was also Arkon Vulktaz, a blue DragonBorn who held a religious symbol tightly. It gave her comfort. Arkon had been paid by Lorgast Terrarock, a dwarf, to guard the wagon. She was one of two who had actually been paid off, the rest were stray dogs.

Inside the wagon, three adventurers sat in silence. On one side sat Ludenoff Wootoofoo and Nile Hedrin. On the opposite side sat Luke Wadi.

Ludenoff was also paid to guard the wagon. Sliver, Luke, and Nile were just add ons. Though, their escort, Vangace Uvashdan, had recommended them Sliver. Luke and Nile however had stumbled on the wagon and demanded to join.

"'Ey you dwarf." Luke had an accent that made his speech hard to understand sometimes. He had a violin in his hands, he played a quiet tune to himself. 

"Yeah?" Ludenoff definitely didn't trust Luke or Nile, he had heard them talking about their criminal records. Apparently Luke had eyes in Thyindres and several other places.

Luke pulled a cigar from his pack, gesturing to Ludenoff with it. "Ya got a light?" He waved it around. To say Luke was an ordinary looking human man would be a lie.

He had longish hair, dyed orange by some sort of magic, maybe. His accent was foreign, or at least not local. When he opened his mouth, Ludenoff could see that Luke was missing a few back teeth. And to top it all off, he smelled terrible, like he hadn't bathed in months. Ludenoff's nose scrunched up whenever he looked at Luke.

Searching around his bag, Ludenoff pulled out a tinderbox, handing it to Luke. "Knock yourself out." Lazily, Luke took the tinderbox and lit his cigar, taking a long herf. He coughed a little as he exhaled.

Nile waved the smoke out of his face, clearing his throat in the process. "Where are we taking this wagon again?" He wasn't paying attention when Luke asked. Nile's question earned a scoff from the man himself.

"They don't know." Luke took another herf. "They're just doin' it 'cause they're good little trained dogs." Luke eyed Ludenoff as he insulted him. The dwarf didn't flinch at all, mostly because the alcohol he had drank was starting to kick in. That's okay though, he fought better drunk.

"Oh." Nile looked out of the wagon, accidentally making eye contact with Arkon. She was cute, a fair bit taller than he was. She tucked her hair behind her horns, showing them off slightly.

Luke lightly kicked Nile's leg, making his head jerk suddenly. "Kinda funny the men are all slacking off in here, ain't it?" Luke smirked, throwing Arkon a small mean look. 

Nile's body rippled like scales turning over. He had become a woman with green eyes and blonde hair. "You sure about that?" He taunted before switching back to his normal form, a slightly overweight balding man.

Luke chuckled quietly as he turned his attention back to his violin. Ludenoff had started to doze off. "Fuckin' sifters." Luke muttered, looking up at Nile for just a moment.

"Woah!" Sliver called her horse to a stop. She hopped off, walking around to the back of the wagon, accompanied by Arkon. They both moved the cloth that separated the men from the woman.

"Why'd we stop?" Luke complained. 

"There was an obstacle." Sliver spoke sharply, her fuse shorter than the hair on Luke's arm. "We need to move whatever it is before we can proceed."

Luke rolled his eyes, packing away his violin quickly before jumping out of the wagon. "Let's go do it! I'm gonna be fuckin' late to meet a buddy o' mine." Nobody knew what Luke was talking about.

The party assembled and began to get closer to what was blocking the trail. Arkon gasped when they got close enough to see what it was. There were two dead horses in front of them. She looked away.

Sliver tended to her nervous horse, leaving Luke, Nile, and Ludenoff to investigate. Nile walked up to the horses and began to inspect them. He wasn't able to figure what killed them, or anything more than they are horses.

"Well, they're horses." Nile stated stupidly, getting a small chuckle from Luke and an eye roll from Ludenoff. 

"Obviously." Ludenoff nudged Nile back toward Luke. "Let me take a look." He knelt down and looked at them, then it hit him. 

These horses belonged to Lorgast Terrarock and Vangace Uvashdan, he had seen them departing on them a little before he and Arkon set out with the wagon. Looking up at the backs of the horses, Ludenoff could guess confidently that they were killed by arrows. He checked their saddlebags. Empty. A little to his left an empty leather map case had been left behind by whoever killed the horses.

Arkon had yet to gather the courage to approach the dead horses. It grossed her out too much. Sliver on the other hand, had calmed her horse down and joined the others.

Ludenoff turned around to face the rest of the group. "These horses were our bosses horses. My friend's horse." Ludenoff pulled out a flask and took a long drink.

A small but fierce roar took everyone off guard. Two small, green skinned creatures, goblins, ran toward the party. Nobody was prepared.

The first goblin swiped at Ludenoff's stomach with their scimitar. They weren't close enough to actually hit him though. A second goblin slashed Luke across the shoulders, knocking him back and cutting open most of his torso.

An arrow whizzed past Ludenoff's head. Before he could turn and see where he was being shot from, another arrow went through Nile's shoulder, causing him to stumble. "Gngnnn...Shit!" Nile cursed, clutching the arrow and leaping into the trees, hidden from the attackers.

Sliver, with a war cry, slammed down her greataxe only inches from the goblin that failed to strike Ludenoff. "Leave him alone!" She snarled loudly. The goblin snarled back. 

Gasping for air, Luke stumbled past Sliver, toward the wagon. He slammed his bloodied hand down on Arkon's shoulder, as she still hadn't turned back. "'Ey Lizard face!" He spat blood.

Arkon whipped around to come face to face with Luke. His entire torso had been slashed open, blood soaking into his clothes.

"Luke!" She shouted in panic. "What happened? Are you alright?" She wanted to heal him, but his injuries were too severe for her to heal completely, so she could only heal him a little bit.

"Fuckin' goblins!" Luke groaned in pain, placing pressure on his large wound. "Get this goddam' wound off me so I can go show 'em what's good for 'em!" Arkon nodded quickly, her hands starting to glow.

Ludenoff could only see two goblins, but knew there was a couple more somewhere else. The arrows came from behind him, but these two were in front of him. He had to take care of that one over there, otherwise it could get away and loot the wagon.

He grabbed his nunchucks from his belt, swinging at the goblin farther from him. The goblin managed to dodge the nunchucks but didn't expect the fist straight to her stomach. She gasped, having all the air knocked out of her.

"Come here." Arkon placed her glowing hands on Luke's slashed torso. His wounds started to close, but failed to fully heal. Both Luke and Arkon exhaled, Luke with vigor, Arkon with relief. "That's all I can do Luke, I'm sorry." Her apology fell on mostly deaf ears, as Luke had already begun to equip himself for battle.

"Save those sorrys." Luke cracked his neck. Though he didn't seem like an intimidating man on the surface, he certainly was. Luke studied magic, specifically the magic of music, for years. His violin was his arcane focus, and he planned to use it.

The other goblin watched his friend get attacked by the dwarf, but knew that Orc thing was more of a worry. Orcs are big, and could really hurt his friends. So he would slash at that one.

He took his scimitar and went right across the Orc thing's thigh. She grunted in pain, but didn't fall down. He had to stop them. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see his friend running past the dwarf, narrowly dodging a fierce swing. 

Ludenoff gritted his teeth watching the goblin run right past him toward safety. He wanted to chase after it, but the arrows kept coming; he couldn't do anything.

Nile gripped the arrow stuck in his shoulder. "Gnnng...fuck." He swore. Mustering courage and determination, he snuck his way past the party and toward the wagon. With great strain, Nile lifted himself into the wagon, laying down on his back.

Sliver took her crossbow out, loading it with a bolt. She could see both of the goblins firing arrows at them. She took aim, held her breath, and fired. Her bolt hit somewhere in the farther goblin's arm, she couldn't make out where. She heard it growl in pain.

"Let's have some fun, fuckers." Luke pulled the bow across his violin, creating a heinous sound. He fixed his eyes on one of the goblin's that was shooting arrows from afar.

"You thinks you can beats me?" Luke's vicious mockery had already began to take effect. The goblin twitched, dropping her bow. "You'll die just like any other bug I wipe from my shoe."

The goblin dropped to the ground, dead. No wounds on her body though. A putrid smell surrounded the goblin, her body excreting orange smoke.

Ludenoff swung his nunchucks at the goblin he engaged in combat with. His anger and the two and a half a bottle of alcohol in his stomach caused him to accidentally hit a tree instead, missing his target by a long shot. His fist cramped up before he got more than a few feet closer to the goblin.

She had to get up and do something. She couldn't just let her friends die or get hurt. Pushing past any limits she may have had, Arkon rushed toward the fight, hands glowing with divine power. She focused on the goblin Ludenoff was struggling to fight. Light, burning light came down from the sky on the goblin. He shielded his eyes from the light, only to notice his skin had charred to a crisp. His scream was evident that Arkon's spell was working, she ended the spell, not wanting to kill him.

Grunting and howling in agony, the goblin burnt by Arkon's sacred flames ran back into the forest, putting his scimitar in his sheath so the adventurers couldn't attack him easily. He screamed something, but it wasn't in English.

A small screech fell from a goblin in the forest, one who had been shooting arrows. Sliver could see the goblin clutching their arm, must've messed up knocking the arrow and cut herself. Another arrow from the other goblin landed a few inches from Arkon's feet.

Sliver took the opportunity. Aiming her crossbow, freshly loaded, at the goblin that injured itself, Sliver shot. Right through the forehead. The goblin fell to the ground, dead for sure.

Luke looked one of the goblin's dead in the eye. He took note of how it looked. A hood that didn't cover its face, a scar right around the eye, and some sort of leather armor painted black and white with little skulls added in for extra scary measure. "You tryin' to be like me? Well, it ain't working." The goblin could hear the words and nearly dropped to the ground from such mockery.

Taking a look around, Ludenoff knew this was his time to run. He stumbled around, making a beeline for the wagon, passing Arkon as he went. Arkon had had enough of these goblins trying to hurt her friends.

Making herself as tall as possible, Arkon turned to face the two goblins she could see. The one with skulls, and a woman goblin. One with multiple piercings of silver and gold. Arkon's face scrunched up. "Go!" She roared at them. The woman goblin shook in fear, her eyes dropping tears. The goblins ran away as fast as they could.

With the goblins gone, Arkon glanced at Sliver. Sliver had a few medium sized slashes, but was still standing. Her face contorted with rage and adrenaline. "Are you alright?" Arkon exhaled all the breath she had been subconsciously holding in.

Sliver nodded, turning around. Ludenoff and Luke were still panting, the rush of battle had a strong grip on them. Ludenoff coughed, wiping away the sweat from his brow. Luke checked his violin, only a couple scratches from his hysteric playing.

Wordlessly, they all went around the wagon and found Nile, close to passing out. The arrow was still in his shoulder, bleeding onto the ground. He looked up at the others, groaning a little. 

"We need to get the arrow out of him." Sliver stated, gesturing at Nile. "Luke, Arkon, lift him. Ludenoff, give him some of your beer." Sliver stepped into the wagon, waiting for Luke and Arkon. 

Luke pulled out his dagger and cut the head of the arrow off. Nile groaned quietly. "Here." Ludenoff offered his flask to Nile, who took it swiftly and drank a large gulp. Arkon singlehandedly lifted Nile up, making sure she didn't accidentally touch the arrow. 

"There you go..." Arkon mumbled to herself. Sliver grabbed the arrow and pushed it back, out of Nile's shoulder. She ran the arrow along her lips before dropping it. Luke kicked it outside. Nile took another big swig before handing the flask back to Ludenoff. 

Nile grunted, pulling himself up onto the seat next to Sliver. "Well." He sighed. "Where to now?" 

Arkon shook her head. "You need to rest." She sat down on the opposite side of Nile, looking at him with concern.

Luke and Nile both shook their heads. "We've gotta move." Luke coughed a little. "We stay 'ere and we'll get beat to shit again." He stepped out of the wagon. "Let's move!"

Arkon got in front of Luke, blocking his path. "Luke, you need to rest and let those wounds heal. Let's pull over, off the path, and rest." Looking up, Arkon could see that Ludenoff and Sliver nodded their heads in agreement.

Luke grumbled, turning around to look at the rest of the party, mainly Nile. He may not like sifters, but he had to agree that they needed sleep. "Fine. Where we all gonna sleep?" Luke pointed to the wagon. "That piece a shit ain't gonna hold us all." 

He was right. Arkon thought for a moment about such. She looked inside the wagon, nothing useful for making tents. Damn it. "I'll go ahead and buy some tents. Sliver, may I borrow your horse?" 

Sliver looked to her horse, noticing the calm look in his eye. "Yeah. His name is Lichleh, by the way." Sliver stepped out of the wagon, detaching Lichleh from it. "Take good care of him."

Arkon nodded, hopping atop Lichleh. In but a moment, the DragonBorn rode off toward Thyindres, leaving the rest of the party to recover.

It took her roughly an hour to arrive in Thyindres. The rutted track emerged from a wooded hillside, and she caught her first glimpse of Thyindres. The town consisted of forty or fifty simple log buildings, some built on old fieldstone foundations. More old ruins––crumbling stone walls covered in ivy and briars––surrounded the newer houses and shops, showing how this must have been a much larger town in centuries past. Most of the newer buildings were set on the sides of the cart track, which widened into a muddy Main Street of sorts as it climbed toward a ruined manor house on a hillside at the east side of town. 

As Arkon approached, hopping of Lichleh and tying him to a tree so he wouldn't wander off, she saw children playing on the town green and townsfolk tending to chores or running errands at shops. Many people look up as she approached, but all returned to their business as she went by.

"Excuse me?" Arkon walked up to a pale man who had been walking by. She took note of his dark green eyes that almost seemed to sparkle in the sunlight. He wore a hood, but Arkon could tell he had chocolate colored hair. "Do you know where a shop would be? One for adventurers?"

He cleared his throat, taking a quick look at Arkon. "I think that that building there is a shop." He, similar to but not identical to Luke, had a foreign accent. It sounded...pretty. 

"Thank you!" Arkon rushed off to the building the nice man had pointed out, entering quickly. It was a shop indeed! Shelves were lined with the kind of gear she needed. A human male, middle aged, stood near the shelves. 

"Hello traveler! How may I help you?" He greeted Arkon with a smile, setting her at ease. "Anything you see here is available for purchase!"

Arkon smiled widely at the man, scanning the shelves for anything that might be useful for the night. Healer's kit, bedrolls, tents, blankets, and a new set of clothes for Nile. She placed all of the items in front of the man. "What is the cost of this all?" Arkon sheepishly asked, not wanting to admit she had trouble reading the costs.

He looked over the supplies for a moment before gathering them all in one place. "That'll cost you 15 Golquz and 15 Sionan." 

Arkon searched her pockets for money. Not wanting to calculate how much change she's supposed to get back, she handed the man 17 Golquz. "Keep the change." She said, to which he happily took the coins.

Taking all her new supplies and stuffing them into her pack, Arkon left the shop. Lichleh was exactly where she had left him. "Hey there boy. Ready to go home and see your mom again?" Arkon pat Lichleh's head softly, hopping aboard his back.

––––

Nile, Ludenoff, and Sliver were all either occupied with their own devices or asleep, leaving Luke alone with his own thoughts.

Pulling a quill and parchment from his pocket, he continued to write a letter.

_"Vinyalla,_

_"Sorry you feel so guilty about it, maybe when we meet I can get you more medicine. I know you're desperate, but you have to wait like a good girl._

_"One of my pals told me they saw a red DragonBorn in Thyindres. If that's you, you'd better stay off the streets for the next couple of days. I'm heading there right now and definitely wouldn't want to attract attention to you._

_"We can talk about your thoughts more in detail when I get me a minute in Thyindres._

_"Luke."_

Looking it over one last time, Luke folded the parchment up and put it in his bag. While he put away the letter, he grabbed another cigar. 

"Hey." Ludenoff's voice surprised Luke. Last time he looked in the wagon, Ludenoff was drinking from his flask. Just how much alcohol did this damn dwarf drink?

Luke took a quick herf of his cigar before waving slightly at Ludenoff. Luke looked around the forest surrounding them, ensuring that no goblins were sneaking around waiting for an opportunity to attack.

Ludenoff sat on a rock near Luke. He had been thinking about Luke. "What drew you to us?" Ludenoff took a swig from his flask.

Luke chuckled. He wasn't about to give Ludenoff the actual reason as to why he joined adventuring parties so frequently. "Heard there was some gold that could be earned, so I thought what the hell and tracked you guys down." 

Ludenoff shook his head. "We never announced what we were doing, so how did you hear about us?" His suspicion and distrust of Luke grew. He and Nile were always shifty, and didn't fit in the more heroic or do gooder mold that the rest of the party had made.

Coughing a little, Luke rolled his eyes. "Fine. You and your friends are going exactly where I needs to go. I'm goin' to Thyindres to find a pal of mine." He wasn't lying, but he wasn't telling the full truth either.

Ludenoff eyed Luke. "What do you do for work?" Taking another look at him, Ludenoff could swear he's seen Luke's face in a wanted poster. 

Luke smirked, tossing his cigar trash into the forest. "You win." Luke stood up, looking down at Ludenoff. "How does it feel being in the presence of The Clown?" 

What? Ludenoff just looked at Luke, confused. "The who?" He asked, causing Luke to groan.

"The Clown! Only the owner of the largest human trafficking network this side of Sykannon." Luke showed Ludenoff his stash of various berries and other strange items. "I guess you could say I'm a big deal."

"...what?" Ludenoff felt sick. "You need to leave, right now." He growled at Luke. While most of his flask was in his belly, Ludenoff still had enough of a functioning brain to know that Luke was evil, truly evil. "I don't care where you go, just leave."

Luke chuckled, pulling out a letter and handing them to Ludenoff. The paper the letter had been written on had blood smears and possibly teardrops too. The edges were singed and it smelled of a carcass. 

_"Luke please._

_"I don't know how much longer I can take this. I can't sit here without it. I need it now or I'm scared I'll hurt somebody. I don't even know where I am anymore, I just know they're all dead and I killed them. Please, I'm begging you Luke._

_"PLEASE BRING ME THE MEDICINE!_

_"Vinyalla."_

Ludenoff tossed the letter back to Luke. "You're a fucking horrible person Luke, and I refuse to allow you to travel with me. The others will agree." His face had contorted with anger. He considered killing Luke right there, but something in his gut told him not to.

"Ludenoff." Luke placed his hand on Ludenoff's shoulder. "If I don't go ovah to Thyindres and get that poor girl some medicine, she might just slip a rope around her pretty neck. You wouldn't want that, would you?" 

Ludenoff grabbed Luke's hand and squeezed it as hard as he could. Luke barely reacted. "I'll kill you." Ludenoff grabbed his nunchucks, to which Luke pulled out a dagger from his leather armor.

"I wouldn't. Vinny isn't the only one I've kept in touch with. I keep in touch with every girl that goes through my system and I get the pleasure of meetin'" Luke leaned in and whispered. "How are you gonna explain to them that their friend is dead?" 

Refusing to listen, Ludenoff growled, seconds away from attacking Luke. "Leave. Now. I'm not going to ask again." His knuckles were white he had been gripping his nunchucks so tight.

Sighing, Luke cleared his throat, deciding to take a different path of intimidation. "Maybe you want me to kill all these adventurers? That half Orc, dead. That cute little DragonBorn, dead." Luke continued, describing in detail how he would kill them, but Ludenoff couldn't hear him over the terror in his head, the fear of being responsible again for innocent lives being lost.

"Okay okay! You can stay." The words were painful, but worth the price if it meant that Arkon would live. "Just don't hurt them." Ludenoff wanted to wipe that disgusting, smug smirk off Luke's face, but knew better.

"Thanks dwarf, you're an apple." Luke's strange compliment created an eerie silence in the air. Ludenoff stood up and went inside the wagon, leaving Luke alone outside.

Sliver noticed Ludenoff's frightened expression, but didn't comment on it, finding it best to wait. Arkon had been gone for nearly 3 hours now, she must be coming back soon.

Nile had been asleep for nearly an hour now. He looked uncomfortable, laying across a row of wooden boards meant to be sat on that was way too small for him. He shifted subconsciously into a smaller person, but even that didn't make it anymore comfortable.

"Dragon's back!" Luke shouted to the wagon, watching Lichleh and Arkon ride straight toward him.

Arkon dismounted Lichleh and gave him over to Sliver, his rightful owner, before showing the group everything she got. "We can get more when we get the wagon to Thyindres, this is just for tonight." Arkon yawned, realizing just how tired she actually was.

Ludenoff grabbed a tent and a bedroll before tapping Arkon's shoulder. "We need to talk. You, me, and Sliver." Arkon looked confused for a moment, but when she saw the seriousness in the dwarf's face, she nodded.

Luke grabbed a tent before walking around the back of the wagon to set up his tent. "These 're two person tents." He stated more to himself than to anyone else. "Might come in handy if I get one of them goblin's." 

Sliver and Nile worked together to set up their tent. Truth be told, Sliver didn't want to share a tent with Nile, but since Luke isn't sharing, and Arkon and Ludenoff are sharing, she doesn't have much of a choice. And he can't be all that bad, right?

Arkon set up her and Ludenoff's tent. "Sliver!" She called. "Can you come here for a moment?" Sliver ran over after she finished setting up her bed space.

"Yes?" Sliver, Arkon, and Ludenoff all sat in Arkon's tent. Ludenoff checked to ensure that Luke or Nile weren't eavesdropping. Sure enough, they weren't. 

Nile had gone inside his tent to rest, as had Luke. The sounds of a violin wafted off Luke's tent like a noxious odor. 

"Has Luke told either of you about who he is?" Ludenoff asked, keeping his voice low. Arkon and Sliver both shook their heads. "He calls himself The Clown, and claims to run a human trafficking ring so large it reaches Sykannon."

Sliver's eyes went wide before squinting. She ground her teeth against each other. "Why is he still here then? Why haven't we hurt him?" Sliver's face had shifted with anger. Arkon scooted away from Sliver.

Ludenoff sighed. "He threatened to kill you." Taking another gulp from his flask, he felt the guilt rise through his bones.

The top of the tent pressed against Arkon's back uncomfortably. She leant forward, attempting to make herself as comfortable as possible. "What do you think we should do, Ludenoff?" Arkon had her thoughts on the situation, but decided it would be better to ask Ludenoff, a much older man, what was best.

Ludenoff sighed, unsure. "I don't know." He knew he hated Luke, but didn't know enough about Nile. Something told him that if they kicked Luke out, he would take Nile with. "Let's let them stay at least until we can get these supplies to Lorgast, then we can send them on their way." Ludenoff's choice sounded logical to the others. They both nodded.

"I'm going to go to bed." Arkon stated, rolling out a bedroll. "Good luck, sorry I can't be more of a help." She apologized genuinely, but her eyes wouldn't stay open for much longer. 

Sliver grabbed her things and went in her tent, ignoring Nile's snoring.

Ludenoff stayed awake for a while longer, taking watch. Nothing eventful happened.

Luke slept alone.

Nile couldn't get comfortable, as the wounds on his chest were still healing.

Finally, Ludenoff decided the crawl in the tent he was sharing with Arkon and get some rest before tomorrow.

Beautiful. They really were so young then. 

Wouldn't you agree, **Maiha?**


	2. Chapter 2: A Crow with Golquz

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Murder of Crows rest between mating seasons, and between meals to conserve energy. These Crows rest when they are wounded. A long rest will make all things better, do they not?
> 
> But once they open their wings, the bodies will fall from the rooftops onto their nest. The Clown and Nile Virus will be ready, but not the others, no no...
> 
> How would you describe it, Ghostly Traveller? 
> 
> "Hell. Raining down for years." A rather somber description, but sadly accurate.

Sliver stirred to the sound of Luke's heinous violin playing an off key tune. Lifting her head slightly, she found Nile had already gotten up. In her bedroll, a chill lingered from the cold night. Rolling around, she pulled herself out, tucking her hair behind her pointed ears.

Upon exiting the tent, she found Ludenoff, Luke, and Arkon surrounding a fire. The smell of cooking meat filled her nose and drew her closer. Though she did not like eating meat, she very much enjoyed the scent.

Ludenoff scooted to make room for Sliver, taking yet another swig from his flask. "How much does that fuckin' flask carry?" Luke asked, tossing his cigar into the fire. "A friend made it for me, it'll never run out." Ludenoff spoke somberly, like he was dwelling on bad memories. 

"Where's Nile?" Sliver questioned, stretching her sore muscles from the cramped sleeping quarters. 

"In the wagon, I think he's going through his things." Arkon replied, her stomach grumbling. "How much longer do we have to wait Ludenoff?" She asked politely, hiding the fact she hadn't eaten in almost 2 days.

Ludenoff turned the cooking meat around a couple times, nodding to himself. "I think it's ready. Luke, go get Nile and let him know food's done." He commanded, ignoring The Clown's mumbling protests. 

Luke stood up, running his ash covered fingers over his freshly healed wounds. He pulled the curtain to the side before stepping in the wagon.

Nile sat still, shifting from one form to another. He looked a little out of it, but 'woke' quickly when he saw Luke waving a hand in front of his face. He didn't sleep a wink next to that Sliver. It wasn't that he didn't trust her, it was just that he felt uncomfortable sleeping next to somebody.

"Food's done, better get some before we eat it all." Luke's sudden harshness came as a bit of a shock to Nile. Sure, they weren't exactly friends or acquaintances, but they got along. Or at least Nile thought they got along.

He shifted into Luke. "You don't look like you've got a large stomach, Clown." He didn't fear Luke's power. Such power was only useful if they could recognize him, but it's hard to recognize a sifter, especially one with as clouded of a background as he.

"I get a large stomach when I'm in the company of a fuckin sifter or any other race that pisses me off, like orcs." Luke spat before swiping the curtain as he left, leaving Nile alone.

"Sorry for being me I guess." Nile said to himself, chuckling a little at the racism Luke held close to his chest. Guess humans are just like that. 

Luke sat back down in his spot, fishing around in his bag for his mess kit. It took a moment, but he pulled out a metal bowl with utensils from his bag. He held his bowl out, waiting for Ludenoff to give him a slab of meat. With a wet splat, the meat fell into Luke's bowl. He raised his upper lip at the dwarf before taking a seat closer to the others, eating silently.

Arkon had a small wooden plate that she had carved a year ago for a friend. Turns out the friend didn't need more dishes in the house, so she was allowed to keep the plate she made. Arkon grabbed a smaller cut of meat than Luke had been given and dug straight in. She ate quicker than everyone else, and just as quickly went in for another portion of meat, there being plenty left over for Nile.

Sliver shook her head when offered meat from Ludenoff, choosing instead to eat the dried rations she packed in her bag before they left. The smell of meat was pleasant, but she couldn't quite enjoy the taste.

Nile finally exited the wagon, his stomach grumbling loudly. He extended his hand, earning a strange look from Ludenoff. Nonetheless, Ludenoff gave the hungry Nile a slab of meat. Nile ate rudely. No fork, no napkin, not even a plate. He swallowed it all and belched. Luke clapped at the loud burp. _Oh I guess we're on good terms now?_ Nile thought, giving Luke a look.

Ludenoff looked at the meat, just enough for him to eat. He took his plate and added some spices he kept with him at all times to it. Cutting off a little section and placing it into his mouth, he found it just as delicious as he had hoped. When he finished eating, he washed his plate off with the waterskin he packed. He placed the now clean plate back in his bag, along with the waterskin. 

Luke clicked his tongue. "We should discuss what goes on today." The others nodded, forming a small circle around the fire. 

Arkon could see the wagon behind Luke and Nile. "I think we should take the wagon to Lorgast, it's what Ludenoff and I were paid to do," A quick glance at Sliver made Arkon add, "And Sliver." 

Ludenoff hadn't told Arkon who the horses belong to, the ones he and Nile worked together to push out of the way for the wagon. "Arkon, the dead horses were Lorgast and Vangace's horses." Ludenoff didn't want to startle or upset Arkon, so he said such quietly.

Sliver and Arkon looked at Ludenoff with shock. "What? Why didn't you tell us?" Sliver spoke up, slamming her fist against the ground.

Luke piped up. "Doesn't matter he didn't tell you, we gotta track down them goblins, else we're gonna get attacked again." Though sound, his words didn't hit the others correctly. Ludenoff and Sliver stared at him with a distrusting gleam in their eyes.

"You just want to go there so you can traffic them, don't try to hide your intentions." Arkon spoke with seriousness in her voice, and anger on her face. "And so you know, I do not approve of such evil actions." 

Luke scoffed. "Bitch, you don't know half of what I do for cities like Halbach or Vermonus." Luke herfed. "Half the city's labor is made up of the bastard kids I put in there, you should be thanking me." 

Arkon opened her mouth to argue further, but Nile groaned, annoyed with the bickering. "Hate him all you want, the man has a point, even if it's just a coverup. We should follow the goblins, especially if they killed your employers horses." Luke smirked smugly as Nile defended him.

Arkon grumbled a little, realizing that they did have a point. "You're right. Vangace and Lorgast could be there for all we know." Arkon nodded, still convincing herself. "You're right, we should go there."

Sliver pointed at the wagon. "Are we gonna leave that here? Should somebody stay behind to, I don't know, guard it?" Luke and Nile looked over their shoulders to stare at the wagon.

"It'll be fine." Luke dismissively shrugged it off. "What do you say we leave in 30 minutes?" He was the first to stand up, grabbing his violin which he leaned against a tree. 

"We can leave in an hour, gives the slower people more time." Ludenoff ensured, taking another swig. 

Everyone prepared in their own ways.

Luke played a song he wrote himself for a while before stopping abruptly, almost like he suddenly remembered something. From his pack he pulled the berries he showed Ludenoff out and squashed them into paste. It took a moment, but Luke quickly covered his face in white paste. Wiping the excess white onto his pants, he squashed black berries into paste. He applied the black paste around his eyes. Finally, he used a red paste made from similar berries to redden his lips and make small marks around his eyes and cheeks. 

Arkon isolated herself in her tent, reading her religious text without a hint of distraction. With one hand, she flipped the page when she needed to. With the other hand, she held her symbol close to her chest, pouring her thoughts into it like one would pour their insecurities onto an underpaid therapist.

Ludenoff drank and drank, never succeeding in getting himself drunk. He whipped little droplets of alcohol from his beard, noticing the few hairs he accidentally pulled were grey. Grey? He's only 58! How was he under enough stress to grey his beard? Whatever, when this job is over, he's gonna get nice and drunk, maybe even try to keep in touch with Arkon, she seemed nice and naive enough.

Sliver attacked a tree with her axe and crossbow, a question popping into her mind. "Are we going to sneak in or fight through?" She looked to Ludenoff for an answer.

Ludenoff pondered for a moment. Remembering that Arkon mentioning that her armor made being quiet difficult, he gave an answer. "Most likely fighting through. I don't know if all of us can sneak around like Nile." The sifter perked his head up at the mention of his name before slowly going back to his own business.

Nile sharpened his rapier, expecting a large fight to weave through, silently plunging his blade between the ribs of some unsuspecting fool. Checking around himself to ensure nobody was looking, he tucked a small folded up letter into his pocket. 

The time came, an hour had passed. Arkon held onto her symbol as she exited her tent. "Everyone ready?" She asked, receiving nods and confirmations from everyone. "Let's move." Said Luke from the very back of the group. 

Sliver looked at him once, then had to look again when she saw his painted face. "What's with the face?" She questioned with a hint of rudeness in her voice.

Luke pulled his lips into a large, comical smile with his fingers. "I'm a clown, I make people smile!" Disturbing.

Ignoring Luke's antics, the party set out on foot (Sliver left Lichleh with the wagon as a sort of defense) toward where they found the dead horses.

Sliver bent down, trying to examine the footprints to determine where the goblins went. Quickly, she realized that she couldn't tell what was goblin footprints and what was her fellow employees footprints. "A little help please." She looked over her shoulder at Arkon. 

Arkon bent down, also confused with the disturbed dirt. She stood up, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly. "I can't tell either, help." She smiled, embarrassed.

Nile cleared his throat, moving around Luke and Ludenoff to see the tracks. Just barely, Nile got an idea of where they went. "I think they ran that way." He pointed to a hidden trail blocked by a thicket of bushes. "Looks like around 12 goblins went through. Think they had a couple bodies with them." Nile added quickly after pointing, taking some guesses as he did.

"Let's get going then." Luke made his way to the front of the group, walking forward with confidence, cutting the bushes with his dagger, acting like nothing could hurt him. 

Roughly ten minutes into their quest for the goblin hideout, Luke failed to notice the hidden snare just below his feet. It snapped before trapping him in midair, maybe 10 feet off the ground. Ludenoff shouted in surprise. "Are you alright?" 

Luke struggled, trying to get himself free. "Get me outta here!" He dangled to and fro, crossing his arms as he waited for the others to cut the cord he could so easily see.

Sliver saw the cord that held the snare together, she went to slash it but Arkon intervened. "He could hit his head if he falls, we should lower him slowly." Sliver nodded in agreement.

Nile and Arkon held the cord as Sliver cut it. They lowered Luke carefully. When he touched the ground, he used his dagger to cut the cord entrapping his feet. "Thanks Arkon." Sliver and Nile looked at each other in mild disbelief.

"You're welcome." Nile sassed as he took a drink from his waterskin.

"I'll take lead." Sliver said confidently, making her way past Ludenoff to lead.

Yet another ten minutes went by. Sliver looked at the ground, noticing something strange. "Stop." She commanded, putting her hand up in a halting motion. Getting on one knee, she inspected the ground, poking it with her finger. On contact, the ground seemingly caved in to a large hole. "Looks like somebody put a pretty convincing cloth over this hole. That was close." Sliver sighed in relief that nobody was hurt. 

Everyone went around the hole. Following the goblins trail, they came across a large cave in a hillside five miles from the scene of the ambus. A shallow stream flowed out of the cave mouth, which was screened by dense briar thickets. A narrow dry bath lead into the cave on the right hand side of the stream.

"Careful." Ludenoff warned the party, mainly Luke. "We could run into goblins, or whatever else is calling this cave home. We can't just go in running and screaming." 

Luke rolled his eyes. "Obviously. I'm not stupid." He retorted, an idea popping into his head. "Nile, didn't you say you're great at sneakin' around?"

Confused, Nile nodded. "Yeah, why?" Luke's confident smile worried him on what that crazy Clown was thinking.

"Go check up ahead, rest of us can wait right here fer ya." Luke gestured with his head toward the stream. 

Nile shook his head. "You want me to scout, you pay me." He extended his hand with an expectant gesture, looking at Luke and Arkon greedily. He knew they had money.

Arkon's shocked expression quickly spread to Sliver and Ludenoff. "Wh-No! We don't have to pay you to help us! You're already getting paid!" Ludenoff said in a harsh whisper.

Luke chuckled a little, handing 10 Golquz to Nile. "Man's gotta be paid for his craft, ain't it common practice to pay people in your cultures?" Luke continued to seed words of heat into his sentences, hoping to anger the inhumans.

Happily paid, Nile went ahead, shifting into a goblin just in case he got caught. On the east side of the stream flowing from the cave mouth, a small area in the briar thickets had been hollowed out to form a lookout post or blind. Wooden planks flattened out the briars and provide room for guards to lie hidden and watch the area––including a pair of goblins lurking there right now!

Nile froze, thankful that he was incredibly careful crossing the stream so that he wouldn't make any noise whatsoever. The goblins were engaged in a game of cards, must be something simple. One of the goblins looked familiar. 

Hood that didn't cover his face, black and white armor with skulls painted on, this was one of the goblins that ambushed Nile and his friends. He didn't want to kill him, but he also knew that he had to get them out of the way. After a moment, an idea revealed itself.

Silently, Nile crept up behind the unfamiliar goblin. He fumbled grabbing his rapier and dropped it against the ground. Quick as the wind, Nile grabbed his rapier and leapt into the thickets. Luckily, the thickets weren't thorny. 

The goblins looked around for a moment, suspicious of the thud they heard. The skull goblin grabbed his scimitar just in case. The other goblin looked around, peering into the cave, but not outside of the cave. Turning back to the skull goblin, she spoke in Gobble, language of goblins.

["Must've been the wind."] She said with a little hesitation, turning back to their game.

Nile had another chance. He wouldn't drop his rapier this time, he already had it in his hand. Once again sneaking up behind the unfamiliar goblin, Nile plunged his blade into her side, placing his hand over her mouth so she couldn't scream.

Swiftly shifting into Arkon, Nile growled menacingly at the skull goblin. ["Don't make a fucking sound."] 

The goblin didn't scream, but he did point his scimitar right at Nile. ["Let her go..."] His voice shook slightly, but he managed to put his words into a cheap snarl.

The unfamiliar goblin struggled against Nile's grip, pushing the sword out of her side. Her head fell forward before whipping back and hitting Nile's nose. He grunted in pain, stumbling a little and letting his hands go from the unfamiliar goblin girl.

He couldn't let a little damage take him down. He jumped forward and kicked the scimitar out of the skull goblin's hands.

This was the goblin's chance. He ran past Nile, toward the cave mouth, narrowly missing Nile's grasping hands. He stumbled and almost fell on loose rocks as he ran.

The girl goblin slashed at Nile, just barely missing. Rushing after the escaping goblin, Nile tackled him to the ground, pinning him by placing both of his knees on the goblin's back. The goblin attempted to escape, but only succeeded in tiring himself out.

With a stumbling, weak walk, the girl goblin shambled toward Nile and the other goblin. She slashed at Nile again. Her scimitar missed, hitting the ground next to them.

Using the butt of his rapier, Nile hit the goblin girl face as hard as he could. She fell backward, hitting the ground with a loud thud and crack.

Swiftly finding his rope, Nile tied down the skull goblin for interrogation. Standing up, he went and leaned over the other goblin. He bent over and checked her pulse. Upon finding one, he sighed in relief. He wasn't paid to kill her, so he wouldn't.

Attention now fully on the skull goblin, Nile turned him over, dragging the silent goblin over to the wall. ["My friends and I are gonna have you singing prettier than a mockingbird."] 

With that, Nile knocked out the goblin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally I was going to only end chapters when The Crows took a long rest, but then I realized that this chapter would end up being around one Justice League Snyder Cut long, which I'd like to avoid.
> 
> So I ended up taking a suggestion from a writing mate of mine in order to end it.
> 
> I'm in love with this, I didn't think I'd have this much fun, but here I am.
> 
> Mewden, hear my cry, please bless me so that this well doesn't go dry...


	3. Chapter 3: Laying the Eggs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Crows have eggs! One currently, but will one day spread like wildfire. Then three, then ten, then one hundred, then more than they can count or even know about.
> 
> But I know all of them, by name.
> 
> Miandra Glazcrauk, Wishmaking Ottoman, Kiki Uvashdan, Cyren Lushel, Orphtusk Lushel, "The Whisping Widow", I could go on and on...
> 
> Vara vara

Arkon paced back and forth, ignoring the worried stares from Sliver and Ludenoff. "We shouldn't have given them the benefit of the doubt..." She mumbled under her breath. "We should've refused and moved on."

Sliver glanced at the bound and hooded goblin that Nile presented them about 15 minutes ago. "We can't just let him stay here now––" Sliver shrugged a bit–– "We need to figure out what he knows and let him go."

Ludenoff scoffed. "Let him go? Let him go where?" He shook his head, attempting to clear his thoughts. "Let's talk with him, then figure it out from there."

Arkon finally stopped pacing and looked at the other two, worry clear across her entire body. "If we're talking to him, who's going to?" She looked to Ludenoff first. "Maybe you should." She suggested.

Ludenoff glanced at Sliver before shaking his head. "It should be you, Arkon." He ran a finger through his beard, twirling it around his finger. "You're the kindest of us three, you're more likely to get info than either of us."

Fear clouded Arkon's mind. "What if I mess up?" She started to pace again. "What if I can't get info from him? What if I-" The sudden stinging of a palm halted her pacing.

Sliver had slapped Arkon. "Get yourself together." Though a bit of a brute, Sliver knew what she was doing. "You're what, 16? You'll be just fine. Just talk to him like you would a little kid that has a bad temper."

Despite her hands continuing to shake, Arkon managed to calm her shaking breaths into something more steady. "Thank you." She took a deep breath. "Okay...here we go."

She placed her hand on the goblin's hood for a moment before pulling it off in one swift motion. "Relax, relax." Arkon said both to herself and to the goblin. "I just want to talk with you."

The goblin snapped its jaw and growled, startling Arkon a bit. It looked at her, confused, before saying in English. "What do you want?" His voice wasn't deep, but wasn't high pitched either. It was like he wasn't fully mature yet.

"To talk. What's your name?" Arkon looked around her, pulling up a nearby chair that the goblins had been sitting in before Nile attacked them.

The goblin spat. "Clover, and you?" Clover didn't like being tied down, like any sane person would, but he especially didn't like being stared down by an unfamiliar DragonBorn.

Blue, a soft smile, sharp teeth, and hair that just barely brushed her shoulders. She'd be cute to see sitting across from you at the bar. But this wasn't a bar.

"My name is Arkon. And this is Ludenoff and Sliver." Arkon indicated to her friends, who had a more serious look than the friendly one on Arkon's face. "We need to ask you some questions."

Clover growled, baring his teeth. "Over my dead body." He felt around his boot for his shiv, only to find it had been taken.

Arkon sighed, batting her eyelashes. "We only need to know a few things." She said with a small, endearing smile on her pretty little face. "A little information wouldn't kill you, would it?"

Clover looked around. No sign of his buddy to help him. He groaned, knowing he was gonna have to spill beans. "You stumbled on the Clawrend tribe. There, can I go now?" He struggled against the ropes.

"How many goblins are in the cave? How many threats are there?" Ludenoff piped up, scooting closer to Clover in his chair.

Clover tilted his head up, thinking for a second. "Well, there's less than twenty of us in there. We also got a bearbug in there named Glung." He looked back down at the dwarf. "That satisfy?"

Sliver ground her axe, never taking her eye off Clover. "Not quite." She showed him her teeth, just as sharp as Arkon's and twice as many. "Where's Lorgast and Vangace?"

Clover closed his eyes. Before he could answer, he felt a hand on his shoulder, startling him to open his eyes. Arkon's face was close to his, an innocent enough look in her eyes. "Take your time." 

Took a moment, but Clover answered. "Glung got a message from our King, King Fuc, that somebody named The Flaming Serpent is paying us to keep on the lookout for your buddy Lorgast, capture him, and send him along with anything he's got to King Fuc. We got him and his map." Arkon nodded, standing up while flashing her finger to Clover.

Arkon, Sliver, and Ludenoff all left the briar thicket, finding Nile and Luke hanging around outside. "Got him to speak or need me to rough 'em up?" Luke chuckled at his own joke.

Ludenoff shook his head. "The goblins got Lorgast and Vangace." He put a hand on his mouth, pondering. "We need to ask him where the King is, and where Vangace is."

Sliver furrowed her eyebrows. "Wouldn't Vangace be where Lorgast is?" She didn't follow.

"He said the King wanted Lorgast, but he never said the King wanted Vangace. So that means they could've take him anywhere." Ludenoff explained, growing increasingly worried for his friends.

Sliver cracked her neck. "I'll go talk to him." She marched right in, passing Arkon and Nile as she went.

Clover watched the Half Orc approach, and he admittedly started to get a little nervous. _"Orcs have a temper, gotta try not to anger her."_ "Need me to answer more?"

Sliver nodded, putting her weight on the chair Arkon used before. "Where are you keeping Vangace, the human Lorgast had as an escort?" Sliver said without a hint of emotion in her voice.

Clover instantly recognized the name. "He's in the eating cave." He smiled nervously, regretting the action when he caught Sliver's face turning into a scowl.

"Eating cave." She deadpanned. "Eating. Cave." Her tone turned to a growl.

Clover would've thrown his hands up as a sign of innocence if he could. "That's just what we call it! Please calm down." His breath quickened in worry.

Sliver left wordlessly. When she joined the others, she noticed the peculiar look Luke and Arkon were giving her. "Vangace is in there." She told them.

Ludenoff's eyes widened for a moment before focusing in. "Okay. If he's in there we need to get to him before they kill him." The thought of Clover crossed his mind. "What do we do with Clover?" He asked the group.

Luke herfed, blowing smoke out of his nose. "Let Nile take 'em. He's the one who tied 'em up for you." He suggested, though the shaking heads made him frown.

Arkon glared at Luke, Ludenoff stared off into space, debating what to do, and Sliver bared her teeth at Luke.

Nile sighed, once again agreeing with Luke. "Just give Clover to me. He won't be hurt, I'm not like Luke." While a bit flimsy of an argument, the others seemed satisfied for now.

"Fine." Arkon stated, continuing to glare at Luke. "But if you hurt him, I'll hurt you." Though she had her mean face on, Arkon couldn't shake the sense of fear she had for Luke in the back of her mind.

Luke chuckled at the threat, brushing off the glare as he went into the mouth of the cave. 

Ludenoff followed Luke, worried what he would do if he was left alone. Nile looked around to see Sliver and Arkon preparing to join the dwarf. He, however, had something they had apparently forgotten about.

Nile meandered his way past the briars to where he tied and left Clover. He was still there, upset and scared. "Hello Clover." Nile said softly, not wanting to scare the poor goblin more than he already was.

"Can I please go?" His voice shook as he spoke. "I'm terrified, and cold, an- and...please." Pleading wasn't his forte, but after being beaten and tied up, he didn't really have the juice to be snarky like he usually would.

Nile untied the ropes, putting a hand on Clover's shoulder in case he tried to run. "We've decided that you're gonna be going with us. You'll be under my command. Don't try to fight, it's easier this way."

Clover was begging Nile to change their mind, to convince them to let him go, but only in his mind. The silver linings were clear and better than any alternative. 

_At least it's him, and not The Clown. He doesn't seem crazy like him. Arkon is preferred, but maybe this guy will let me be near her._

He didn't leave the chair. "Will you hurt my friends?" Clover stood up and looked to Nile, a worried look on his face. "There's one that I want to make sure isn't hurt." 

Nile nodded, thinking about the others. "I'll have to talk with them, but I'm sure most of them would be willing to spare your friends." He nudged Clover toward the exit of the briar patch. "Come on, they're waiting for us."

They caught up quickly and made their way past Arkon. Sliver was in front of them, with Ludenoff and Luke in front of her. The party went inside, slowly.

Just inside the cave mouth, a few uneven stone steps lead up to a small, dank chamber on the east side of the passage. The cave narrowed to a steep fissure, and is full with the stench of animals. Savage snarls and the sounds of rattling chains greet Luke and Ludenoff's ears where two wolves are chained up just inside the opening. Each wolfs chain lead to an iron rod driven into the base of a stalagmite.

Both Luke and Ludenoff halted. Ludenoff signaled to the others to also halt. "Careful." He said at medium volume, knowing the wolf snarls would cover his voice. 

Arkon peered over Nile's shoulder, looking at the wolves and two of them biting and snapping at each other. "Should we try to calm them down?" She asked Sliver.

Sliver flinched a little at somebody talking in her ear, but when she realized it was just Arkon she felt her muscles relax. She looked at the stupid wolves bite each other, pretend fighting. "They haven't seen us, we could just ignore them." Her eyes fluttered above the wolves and toward the east wall, where she could see a narrow opening.

She tapped Ludenoff's shoulder, pointing toward the opening. He looked over at her, then to Luke, then back to her. Ludenoff leaned in close and whispered in her ear. "Do you think we should crawl through there?" 

Sliver nodded, whispering back, watching Luke cautiously. "I don't know where it leads." She admitted. "But it could be where Vangace is." It wasn't a hunch or some feeling or anything like that, but maybe saying it would make it true.

Ludenoff looked to the wolves. "Luke, do you know any spells to take care of those wolves?" He grabbed Luke's arm to pull him back, worried that if he went too far out, the wolves would see his bright hair.

Luke tickled the strings on his violin, thinking. "What way?" He brought his hand down from the violin to a dagger strapped to his armor. "You want 'em dead, or do just want 'em in the dirt?" 

Ludenoff looked confused by the seemingly indifferent choices. "What do you mean?"

Luke pointed to the ground, fake snoring. "I can use a spell to knock 'em out. Put 'em in the ground to sleep, you know?" 

Ludenoff sighed in relief, worried he was going to watch Luke kill the wolves. "Yes, just put them to sleep." He looked over the wolves again. "And don't hurt them." 

With a herf and chuckle, Luke started to play his violin. Two of the three wolves fell to the ground, asleep. "Shit. Looks like I can only get two with my tunes, looks like you'll have to beat that last one down." He tucked his bow away, clearing his throat.

Sliver pulled out her crossbow. Arkon placed her hand on it, silently telling her that violence wouldn't be needed. "Maybe you can calm it down." She had seen Sliver calm Lichleh with such ease, maybe she could calm a wolf just as easily.

Sliver nodded, walking out toward the wolf. Unfortunately, she stumbled and tripped. The wolf growled and barked loudly at the foolish mess of half Orc.

The iron rod securing the wolf cracked and loosened, not enough to free the wolf, but enough that if it yanked again, it would be. Arkon ran ahead of everyone else and grabbed Sliver, dragging her away from the snarling wolf.

 _I guess I was wrong._ Arkon thought glumly, supposing that it would be her turn to try and calm the beast. With a sigh, she asked the others. "Do you want me to try?" 

Ludenoff shrugged. "I could attempt." While an attempt to make Arkon feel better, his skill with animals was...lacking, to put it nicely.

He approached the wolf, aggravating it. The wolf barked and barked, unable to snap the rod and attack Ludenoff. It growled angrily, not showing any sign of calming down. "Sorry Arkon," Ludenoff sighed, taking a swig of his flask, "Looks like it's your turn."

Luke groaned, making his way to the wolf. The closer he got, the more the wolf barked and pulled the rod out until it broke. It lunged at Luke, just barely missing. 

Pushing past Ludenoff and Nile, Arkon ran and jumped onto the wolf, pinning it to the ground with one hand over its mouth and another trying to hold its body in place.

Luke swung his leg back to kick the wolf, only for it to be caught by Sliver. She drags him away from the wolf, planting him 10 feet away from it.

Untying the rope that hung on the side of his pack, Ludenoff charged forward and wrapped the wolf up, subduing it completely.

Ludenoff exhaled, relieved. With the wolf tied up and muzzled, there was nothing stopping them from investigating the opening. 

They all gathered around the fissure, looking at one another. "Who wants to go first?" Luke asked. With everyone looking at him, he knew it would be him going first. "Fine." He grumbled.

He tried to climb up the chimney, finding the rubble to be too slippery for his feet to plant stably. He slipped and fell backward, hitting his head against a rock. "Ow fuck." He grumbled.

Nile bent down and helped Luke stand. Luke shoved Nile's hand back to him. "I'll try." He said with a sigh.

Nile also fell. "Fuck." He pulled himself up, rubbing the back of his head, trying to burn the soreness out. He pointed to Ludenoff. "You go." 

Going forward into the opening, Ludenoff slowly climbed his way to the top of the trash sweep. Taking a look around, he found nothing or nobody that could be dangerous. 

Ludenoff leaned over, seeing Arkon's face looking up at him. "There's more of my rope by the wolf, if someone grabs it and tosses it to me I can make a rope ladder, um, thing." He had a vague idea of what he could do with his rope, but nothing concrete.

Arkon gave him a thumbs up before looking around the wolf. Next to the wolf's feet, the rest of the rope lay. Sticking her torso in the chimney, she threw the rest of the rope up to Ludenoff.

Now equipped with rope, Ludenoff tied one end of the rope around a stalactite, tossing the other end down. "Climb up." A low growl, a goblin growl, came from behind him. He ducked down, thankful there wasn't anybody behind him with a knife to his throat. Yet. "Be careful and quiet, I just heard a goblin." 

One by one, the party climbed up. First Arkon, then Sliver, then Nile, then Clover, then finally Luke. They all hid behind a large rock, letting Nile peek out.

Sacks and crates of looted provisions were piled up in the south end of the large cave. A large opening lead north down a set of natural stone steps, the roar of falling water echoing from beyond. In the middle of the cavern, the coals of a large fire smolder.

["Right there!"] Clover whispered to Nile, pointing to a goblin with many rings of silver and gold in her ears and one in her lip. The goblin from the ambush. ["Her name is Candy, and she's my only friend here. Please don't let them hurt her."]

Nile nodded, turning back to the rest of the party. "Guys, come here." He motioned for them to peer around the rock. He pointed out Candy. "Clover doesn't want us to hurt her, she's apparently his only friend." He looked at Luke, stressing silently over that smirk on his face and look in his eye. "What are you thinking Luke?"

"If you don't want that pretty girl hurt, I'll take care of her." Luke herfed again, tossing it away. Seeing the obvious looks of refusal in everyone's, even Nile's, eyes, he added. "I've had to keep hold of a person for months before, several times, I know what I'm doing, and I won't hurt her. Just calm down, I'm not heartless."

Arkon opened her mouth to protest, but the sound of Gobble shut her up, reluctantly. 

Nile and Clover were watching at the front, Luke behind them, Arkon behind him, and then Sliver and Ludenoff behind her. 

Arkon watched Nile as best as she could. She knew she couldn't trust Luke and that she could trust Ludenoff and Sliver, but she didn't know how she could feel about Nile. He seemed trustworthy but also had a criminal history according to Ludenoff.

The sound of impact followed by a yelp rang through Arkon's ears. Clover shouted in Gobble, rushing toward the yelp. Nile tried to stop him, but couldn't. 

"Clover!" Nile shouted, abandoning subtlety. He saw Glung hit Candy with the back of his weapon, but he couldn't stop Clover from running.

 _Shit shit shit...this isn't good._ Nile thought.


	4. Chapter 4: Clawrend's Murder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tides will change for the Clawrend tribe, as will for our Murder. In these next few...dinners, we will be taking a peak at the more infectious members.
> 
> The Clown, The Nile Virus, The Swarm Queen, and perhaps even The Symbol of Evil. All of them are quite the cards in my opinion! I find The Symbol of Evil the most dimensional of them all, but I could be a bit biased.
> 
> Regardless, I have a story to tell you, don't I? Sit back, relax, and pay attention please.

They had no time. No time to prepare, no time to stretch or warm up, just straight into the fight. 2 goblins, including the one named Candy that Clover didn't want hurt, a bearbug with a scruffy, oversized wolf were all present as hostiles. 

With a roaring war cry, Sliver swung her greataxe at the bearbug Glung. Her axe cut through his armor and gashed his shoulder, but he didn't falter or stumble backward, he stayed tall and strong.

"Who dares defy Glung and his might!??" He roared with might at the Half Orc scum. 

Sliver growled as her axe ground the ground, creating sparks. She gnashed her teeth at Glung, never saying a real word.

Ludenoff brandished his nunchucks, striking the goblin with them. He went to punch the goblin, but swung too far out and gave the goblin the opportunity to block, which it certainly did.

With a louder, roaring war cry, Glung swung his Morningstar down on Sliver. Sliver's head went down, her body followed. Blood leaked from the side of her head where she was hit. Glung turned to look at Candy, shouting. "Shoot the dwarf!" He commanded.

"Y-yes sir!!" Candy aimed at Ludenoff, arrow knocked and ready to fire. She steadied her breath, firing the arrow. It hit him right in the shoulder. He grunted, pulling it out quickly.

Hiding behind the rubble, Nile sidesteps so he is just barely visible. Using a short bow, he shot the mangy wolf. 

It whimpered and ran away, slipping past Luke and Arkon unscathed. 

Three goblins ran in, clanging their scimitars and readying their bows. "Fuck, company!" Luke shouted, pointing at the new hostiles.

The goblin Ludenoff attacked focused his eyes on Luke, aiming his bow. He shot Luke, hitting him in the arm. _Bingo._

Arkon opened her mouth, strands of blue electricity forming like saliva. Turning her body toward the three goblins that the wolf attracted, she expelled her DragonBorn lightening breath. It crawled toward them quickly, charring them badly.

Luke's eyes were set on Candy, but he knew he couldn't. He had to wait. So instead of going for Candy, he would attack Glung. Using his Longsword, Luke slashed at him. The bearbug is smarter than Luke originally thought, as he dodged the attack, almost gracefully. "Clown!" Glung roared.

A singed goblin pulled back the string on his bow, aiming down Luke. His arrow shot Luke in the throat. Luke fell forward, pushing the arrow through.

Another singed goblin dashed toward Arkon and slashed her with a scimitar. It cut her arm up, but didn't bring her to her knees. An arrow whizzed past her head, just barely missing.

Ludenoff looks to Sliver, then to Luke, then Glung. He had to take Glung down, or everyone would die. Nunchucks in hand, Ludenoff whacked Glung on the left side of his head. Glung recoiled slightly, looking at Arkon instead of Ludenoff.

He swung his Morningstar at her, sweeping her legs out from under her. She grunted and stood swiftly, skittering back from her attacker. He commanded Candy again. "Attack the DragonBorn!"

Candy however, had been staring at Sliver's body. Mustering up whatever courage was left in her body, Candy ran like a bat out of hell toward Sliver, dragging her away from the fight.

Glung pulled his Morningstar back to attack, only for an arrow to hit him in the pec. He grunted, hearing a hoarse "focus on Glung, the bearbug!" come from behind one of the two large rocks over by the trash sweep.

Though weak from the dwarf's attack, the goblin wasn't ready to give up. He clutched his scimitar tight, slashing down at the dwarf. He cut through the dwarf's shoulder, deep. The dwarf fell to the ground, not moving.

"Luke!" Arkon shouted, sprinting toward his body. She pulled the arrow out of his throat, channeling her magic into her hands, healing the wound. She needed a magic caster like Luke, even if she didn't like him. He gasped and stood up, full of vigor and ready to fight.

Making unflinching eye contact with Glung, Luke mumbled words. But not English words, Abylonal. Abylonal, a freakish snarling and gurgling sounds. Glung stared back, confused and unaffected by Luke's mockery.

Arkon recognized the language, the many speeches her leaders gave her teachings on how to spot devil worshippers made Abylonal as recognizable as Dragonian.

She was so stuck in the past that she didn't notice the scimitar that slashed the ground right next to her.

One of the singed goblins Arkon attacked saw Nile and Clover hiding behind the large rocks, he aimed and fired. Nile took another arrow to his shoulder, grunting but still standing.

A different singed goblin shot at Luke. Luke managed to see it coming and sidestepped the projectile.

Glung placed his Morningstar on the ground for a moment, equipping his javelin. With a growl, he threw with all his strength at Nile. His javelin went halfway through the large rock.

Candy pressed her palms on Sliver's chest over and over. She compressed until she heard Sliver gasp for air. _She's alive!!_

Nile jumped toward the other rock, smacking his face against it by accident. He fell on his ass, making a complete fool of himself. Clover face palmed.

The goblin, the original goblin, leapt toward Nile and tried to stab him with their scimitar. Nile dodged and used his own scimitar to disarm the goblin.

FINISH HIM!

Shifting into the goblin, Nile stabbed him in the abdomen, leaned in and whispered "Why are you stabbing yourself?" He took the scimitar out from the goblin's abdomen and slit his throat, blood pooling at his feet. The goblin fell to his knees, then to the ground.

FATALITY

Magic writhed in Arkon's hands, manifesting like fire. She thrusted her hands toward Glung, heavenly flames raining down on him, engulfing him in white fire. He screamed, thrashed, begged his goblins to help him, but all they did was run, run away from the bearbug that had bullied and tormented them ever since he took lead. Glung hit the ground with a loud thud, signaling that the battle was finally over.

Looking around, Luke spotted Candy standing over Sliver. He dashed at her and put a dagger to her throat. She gasped, putting her hands in the air. Her breaths became shorter and shorter until they were nothing but hyperventilation symptoms. 

"Luke!" Arkon yelled as she came over, Ludenoff slung over her shoulder. "She helped us, that isn't necessary!" She tried to pull him away but only succeeded in making Candy cry. The tears ran down her face slowly and softly.

Luke brought the dagger to the bottom of her chin. "Stand up." He commanded, she complied. "You're gonna follow under me, you hear?" He stated, she nodded. 

Clover and Nile ran over. Nile looked to Arkon. "Couldn't have chosen to heal Ludenoff?" He lipped, making Arkon give him a glare. 

She looked back at Luke, angry beyond belief. "Luke, can I see you? Alone?" It took every inch of her willpower to not smite him, blow him away with every divine verse she knew.

Luke looked at her, then at Ludenoff. "Why don't we get him and Sliver here to a place where they can heal?" He smirked at the furious look the Arkon gave him.

She nodded, playing along with Luke's game. He did have a point, but that wouldn't mean he was off the hook. She would have to wait to give him hell, her _friends_ needed help.

Nile grabbed Ludenoff off Arkon's shoulders while she took Sliver. Before they left, they went around to where Clover said the other goblins left Lorgast. They found Lorgast as nothing more than a bloody mess. Luke guessed that the goblins chopped him up as they left, not informing them of the rotting flesh in the blood. He recognized the rotting flesh.

They went back to the room where they fought Glung, as they didn't want to risk dropping Sliver or Ludenoff in the water.

Carefully, they went down the rope slide. They bared the path that lead them to the Clawrend hideout, they put Ludenoff and Sliver in the back of the wagon.

Arkon asked Nile, Clover, and Candy to stay with Ludenoff and Sliver in the wagon. She took Luke outside. She opened her mouth to speak, but Luke spoke first. "Look let's get those two healed up before you start bitching."

"Don't. Luke, don't. I know you were speaking Abylonal, I know your business, and I cannot and will not tolerate you taking control of that girl like a puppet master." 

Luke laughed bitterly. "I'm no puppet master." He sighed, herfing. "Look, I get you hate me, I don't mind that, but I think you're painting me as a worse person than I actually am." He looked at the wagon over Arkon's shoulder. "I take care of the girls in the unit like they were little orphan kittens that landed on my porch." 

Arkon knocked the cigar out of Luke's hands. "If you do anything to hurt her," She grabbed him by his shirt, pulling them him within an inch of her face, "I will hurt you, badly."

He cleared his throat. "I ain't gonna hurt her Ark! Imma keep her with me!" He put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. She smacked it off. "I have a lot of clients who speak Abylonal better than English, so I learned it. It also works to scare those who fear The Clown." 

Though still upset, Arkon decided to pick her battles. "Get in the wagon, I'm taking us to Thyindres." She waited until Luke had gone inside before she went around to the front of the wagon and mounted Lichleh, setting him to trot.

It took them around an hour or two before Thyindres came into view again. It looked just the same as when she first went to get medical equipment for Nile. _I still need to talk with Nile._

In the center of town stood a large, newly built roadhouse of fieldstone and rough-hewn timbers. Arkon parked the wagon to the right it, guessing it was an Inn or something similar.

Nile was the first one out of the wagon. He approached Arkon. "Why don't you and I go in together? The townspeople have already met you, and I think a friend of mine might be living here." He shifted into a fit looking elf. 

Arkon looked inside the wagon, seeing Clover and Candy talking and crying while Luke watched them, playing his violin. "I-I don't know Nile. I don't trust Luke alone with them."

Nile shrugged him off. "Ark, he won't do anything. And besides, I'm not staying out here and I doubt you want to either." 

_Why do I even let him stay?_ Arkon thought glumly, ready to accompany Nile into the Inn, The Elk's Inn, according to the post above the door.

The common room was filled with locals nursing mugs of ale or cider, all of them eyeing Arkon and Nile curiously. "Can I help you adventures?" A short, friendly looking young human male asked from the back of the common room, making his way toward the two.

Nile smiled. "Yes actually, we need to rent some rooms for our friends. They got injured in a fight, so we're gonna let them rest before we continue." Nile said with a smile, subtly looking around the common room for a certain someone.

A hooded figure in the corner might just be who he was looking for.

"Of course!" The human gave a warm smile to Arkon. "My name is Taggered Helberg, what's yours?" He offered a hand for them to shake.

"Arkon Vulktaz." Arkon introduced herself, shaking hands with a smile just as warm as his. 

"Bill Rodress" Nile lied like it was nothing, shaking hands quickly. He ignored the strange look Taggered gave him, he knew he chose a weird name for an elf.

Arkon looked at Nile, confused. Nile gave her a look that clearly said "please don't say anything." She kept quiet, though she noted the name in the back of her mind.

"We have six rooms available currently, how many do you think you'll need?" 

"We're gonna need a second to figure that out." Nile pulled Arkon away from Taggered, turning his back to the human after giving him a smile.

"Why did you lie about your name?" Arkon's lack of sleep and paranoia over Luke made her quick to question and quicker to annoy.

After peering over at the hooded figure for a moment, Nile turned his attention back to Arkon. "I don't know if people here know my teacher or my friends and I'd rather not take risks, I'll tell you more later. Let's focus on rooms." He hoped that would satisfy Arkon until the morning, he hadn't had a good night's rest in nearly two weeks.

She yawned, snapping her mind toward rooms. _There's 6 rooms, and 7 of us. Shoot... Maybe Nile would be okay sharing his room with Clover and Candy._ "Let's get all 6 rooms. Would you be okay sharing your room with Clover and Candy?" She asked, batting her eyes a little.

Nile shook his head. "Candy is staying with Luke. She isn't dead because he wants to keep her, so let him keep her." Upon seeing the look on Arkon's face, he quickly added. "I know you don't like it, but we don't really have a great alternative. And if something happens, we just kill him."

She sighed, sadly agreeing that there was no alternative. "Okay."

They both turned around to Taggered. "We'd like all 6 rooms please." Nile cleared his throat. "How much do we owe you for one night?" 

Taggered nodded his head. "It'll be 5 Sionan for lodging and 3 Sionan for meals." He indicated to the tavern part of the common room.

Nile handed Taggered a Golquz. "Two Sionan back, right?" He knew the math, he just needed to check and see if Taggered was an honest man. The nod that Taggered gave told Nile such.

From his back pocket, Taggered gave Nile two Sionan in exchange for the Golquz. "Do you need help getting things in your rooms?" Taggered asked, receiving a head shake from Arkon. "Alright, come find me if you need anything." With that, Taggered walked away.

Nile and Arkon went outside, to the wagon. When they looked inside, they found Luke, Clover, and Candy playing cards. Sliver and Ludenoff were on the seats, still unconscious.

Nile sat down next to Clover, deciding to help him win. Arkon tended to Ludenoff and Sliver quietly, not wanting to get involved.

Luke tossed his cards down. "Fold." He stood up, stretching his legs. "I'm gonna go down to the shop and buy some things." He announced to Arkon before leaving, wiping the makeup away.

He tooled around Thyindres for a minute or two before finding a shop, the same place where Arkon had been yesterday. It smelled like an antique.

"Can I help you?" The same middle aged human man that talked to Arkon asked, looking at Luke with a curious look in his eye. "You wouldn't happen to be The Infamous Clown, would you?" 

_Awesome, great, fan fucking tactic._ Luke thought grumpily. "Yeah that's me, now can I get my shit and go? Me and my buddies are over here at that elk place for the night before we drop off this wagon shit I think." He pulled out his coin pouch but kept it in his hands.

The man opened his mouth but quickly closed it. "Buy what you need." He said in a hushed tone. He looked like he was processing what Luke said, because he added. "You guys were with Lorgast, weren't you?" The look Luke gave made it clear for the man. "You'll drop your wagon off with me, I can explain more tomorrow."

Luke nodded, annoyed with the monologue. Looking around the shop, Luke grabbed several items before placing them on the table.

Perfume, a Lantern, a Bedroll, some clothes meant for travel, and a backpack. Luke considered using his reputation to lower the price, until he realized he would be staying in Thyindres for a while and needed to keep a small profile.

"That'll be 15 Golquz." The man said, giving Luke a reluctant smile. Upon seeing Luke toss 15 golden coins onto the table, his smile became more genuine.

Silently, Luke took his things and left. He went inside Elk's Inn, finding his room with Candy inside. Her eyes widened as she saw Luke enter, she backed away from him.

He tossed all the things he just bought onto the bed. Candy's eyes scanned the items before frowning in confusion. "What is this?" She squeaked. 

Luke flopped face first onto the bed, next to the items. "They're yours." He half shouted into a pillow, just loud enough for Candy to hear.

She looked at him like he had grown another him. "What? Why did you get these for me?" Her voice cracked a little in fear. The stories she had heard about The Clown played on repeat like a scary story one would tell their children to get them to eat their greens and go to bed at a decent time.

Luke got up, pointing at the bed. "Have a seat, I'm gonna brush your hair." He lazily moved things around in his bag, searching for a wooden brush he kept when his hair would get too out of control for his liking.

Hesitantly, Candy took a seat at the foot of the bed. She mumbled something in Gobble, prompting a confused grunt from Luke. She quickly translated. "You're just making me pretty to sell me, aren't you?" She sniffled. "I hope you make a lot of money." Her snarky remark quickly became buried underneath sobs.

Luke shushed Candy's cries, wiping her tears up. He ran the brush through her long black hair slowly, making an effort to avoid pain or injury. "I ain't gonna sell you." Luke calmly replied, grabbing the perfume and spraying it in her hair.

He noticed the tension in her shoulders. Without a warning, Luke started to massage her shoulders. She flinched, causing Luke to groan quietly. "I'm not gonna sell you, just relax and you might actually start to like me or what I can do for you." He spoke softly, surprising Candy with how gentle he sounded.

Slowly, she relaxed her shoulders, leaning a little into his gentle combing of her hair and slight pressure on her back. She barely even noticed that he started to hum. Within minutes, Candy was fast asleep in Luke's arms.

He kept her there for a minute or two, quietly humming a song he made and stroking her face. "You're a beauty." He whispered. "Let's keep you around for a while." 

Wordlessly, Luke tucked Candy into bed, folding up the clothes he bought for her and placing them next to her on the bed. Grabbing his violin, daggers, armor, and backpack, Luke snuck out of the rental room. He considered writing a little letter for her, but guessed he would be back before she woke up.

As Luke snuck out, he didn't notice Nile also sneaking out. Clover was preoccupied with his own things, so Nile had the perfect cover to slip away and go see if the hooded figure was K'laa or not.

The common room's visitors were quieter, more anonymous, and much more paranoid. Nile counted 8 people. 5 in a group, 1 alone, and 2 talking quietly. Nile slowly approached the lone hooded figure, making a note of the large spider crawling on her, maybe his, hand.

Taking a seat at the figure's table, he could clearly see a familiar face. Round but jaded, eyes clouded but still seeing, and colorless skin. "K'laa Dendle Rajeev, it's been a while." Nile gave a knowing smirk.

The figure, K'laa, jerked her head before focusing on him. "And who sits with me? Who is familiar to The Swarm?" A scratchy, skittering voice emanated from her as she eyed Nile with suspicion.

"It's me K'laa, Nile." He offered a hand to shake before hesitating and retracting the handshake. "I need to talk with you."

K'laa paid no attention to the chinch crawling over her hands and mouth. "I suppose this would be about Lavahine?" She already knew this was the case, she had the same letter, they all did. "Neither I nor The Swarm have found her yet. We suspect she's been taken captive by the bloodsuckers up north."

Nile waved to the bartender, silently requesting a drink. "Nonsense, why would she go alone? She would've brought our friends with her if she was attacking them." The bartender placed a drink in front of Nile, nodding before returning to aid other customers. "I just got word of The Clown's ring, it's moving around in Thyindres. We could look for Lavahine in there, I have a contact."

K'laa rolled her vacant, whited eyes at Nile. "She didn't take our friends because she had a personal reason to attack. We don't know what the reason was, but we are looking into it." She cautiously watched the other customers, requesting a drink.

Nile sighed, a mix of relief and tension. With K'laa and The Swarm feasting for information, the motive behind Lavahine was basically found. "Well, in other news." He took a sip of his drink, a bitter ale. "The group I'm with is delivering stuff for some guy named Lorgast."

K'laa chirped like an insect. "Lorgast Terrarock, Dwarf with two brothers, two missing brothers." She recited like it was a revelation. "He has yet to show in Thyindres, where did he say to deliver it?" 

The look on Nile's face bled ignorance. "Lavahine's most abused student did not join with all the information." K'laa couldn't sound more disappointed. "Who will run the clan if you are as clumsy as the drunkards at the Restward Soul?" 

Nile ignored the insult, knowing it was K'laa's weird way of pointing out his flaws so he can grow. He pushed his drink away, having his fill of ale. "Probably not me." He mumbled before looking back at K'laa. "This group could use somebody like you. Last night Ludenoff made some sort of meat and it was disgusting." 

K'laa sighed, spitting out cicadas that panicked and stuck to her like glue. "The Swarm are apprehensive to be part of someone other than the clan." She leaned in, her face coated deeply with cicadas, all chirping and fluttering nervously. "What if we scare them?" Her buzzing voice a mere whisper this time.

Nile placed his hand on hers, noticing the cicadas turn into black ants as he did. "I've known you before The Swarm and after The Swarm, they won't mind. I might have to convince Arkon to trust my judgement, but you know how good I am at getting people to trust me." The ants became butterflies, but only for a moment. The butterflies became boxelder beetles.

K'laa nodded. "Very well." Her head slithered inhumanly. "Is there anything else you can inconvenience us with? The Swarm grows tired, as do I." She yawned, her mouth full of worms. 

Nile leaned in close, a smile spreading across his face, the kind he made whenever the clan did something morally grey. "I need to sneak into a goblin riddled place, it'd be just the kind of thing we used to do with Lavahine."

K'laa matched Nile's smile. "Where?"


	5. Chapter 5: Thyindres' Struggles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thyindres. Oh how I haven't thought about that little town in so long! The Symbol of Evil moved there before it happened, so it holds a dear place in my heart. Well, beyond being where The Murder of Crows were born.
> 
> The Crows have new young, and new goals, what will happen I wonder...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM NOT DEAD AND THIS STORY ISNT DEAD.
> 
> Hiatus maybe over, I'm out of the writer's block hole I fell into and life shit isn't fucking me raw anymore (it's still fucking me, but at least it brought out the lube)
> 
> Yeah anyway, have fun.

The main passage from the cave mouth climbed steeply upward, the stream plunging and splashing down its west side. In the shadows a side passage leads west across the other side of the stream.

In the shadows of the ceiling to the north, Vinyalla could just make out the dim shape of a rickety bridge of wood and rope crossing over the passage ahead of her. Another passage intersected that one, twenty feet above the floor.

Vinyalla looked to Luke, a soft smile spreading across her face. ["Money is what I desire, and desire scares me."] She said to herself in Dragonian, a language of intricate patterns and slithering letters.

Luke rolled his eyes at her. "English Vin." He had to really crank his neck to the sky in order to see her face. She wore a small smile, showing off her sharp teeth. 

She scratched her neck. "Sionan." She said quietly, her accent much stronger than Luke's. "I wish for money."

He slowly snuck up to the bridge, ignoring Vinyalla almost entirely. After making their way past the bridges, the two found themselves in the chamber where Luke fought Glung.

"There should be plenty of cash-" Luke stopped talking the second he noticed Nile and a woman he didn't know crowding Glung's body.

Vinyalla raised her bow at them both, ululating loudly. Smoke billowed from her nose and mouth. Luke placed his hand on her side, unable to get to her shoulder due to the size difference. "Bow down Vinny, least one of 'em is a friendly." He moved his hand to her arm, lowering her bow slowly.

The woman eyed Luke, her body swarming with wolf spiders. "The Swarm will eat DragonBorn flesh, then Clown flesh." Her body jerked and twitched. "State your names." She commanded.

"Vinyalla Viben Mewquit Jin Xyfry-Ti and Luke Wadi." Vinyalla introduced, dipping her head a little. She lowered her bow completely and put away her arrow. "Give your names to us." 

"K'laa Dendle Rajeev, Guardian of The Swarm." K'laa clicked a little, turning to Nile, who had been ignoring the threatening Vinyalla. "Nile Wesmore Hedrin, member of the Ominilingasi clan." 

Nile waved without looking up. "Yeah cool you guys are here, I don't much care." He scampered from Glung's corpse to another. "Just let me get the money I need." He mumbled, lost in his looting.

So far he had looted 5 Ags from Glung's corpse. _This bitch was rich!_ He thought happily holding a great amount of money. Shifting through a goblin corpse, he found 25 Golquz.

K'laa crouched down next to Glung's body and whispered to The Swarm. The Swarm crawled down her body in the form of worms before burrowing into the body. Luke furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. 

"How the fuck does that swarm become worms when I saw spiders earlier?" Luke snapped, rubbing his exhausted eyes. 

K'laa turned to face Luke after locking her lips with the body of Glung to transfer more worms. "Spirits that change with my mood. The Swarm is my Swarm." She held a worm on her hand, watching it change into butterflies.

Vinyalla's eye caught the glimmer of coin. She fluttered toward piles of sacks and crates marked with the image of an albino tiger. Pushing the crates out of the way, she found a treasure chest. 

Peering over her shoulder, Vinyalla found the others busy. Luke and Nile were looting bodies, and K'laa was...doing something with the looted corpses. 

With a little effort, she managed to open the treasure chest. Inside she found a pouch of Cotusk, a pouch of Sionan, two red potions, and a jade statuette of a frog with tiny golden orbs for eyes. 

She looked down, frowning at her complete lack of pockets. She wore barely enough to cover herself, though she never felt self conscious. Tall, fit, painted head to toe, red skinned, and a little intimidating, that _was_ Vinyalla.

"Luke!" Vinyalla called, waving him down. "Come! I have barter!" She scratched her neck as she waited for him to come over.

As soon as he got close he could see what she had. The frog and pouches of money definitely piqued his interest. "How much you willing to share with me?" He gave her a soft smile.

She tossed him the frog, seconds away from leaving. "The rest stay with me." She hissed quietly. "I must go."

With a bow, Vinyalla left the Clawrend hideout using the chimney the others used when they fought Glung. Nile considered asking Luke who Vinyalla was, but thought that she was just another one of his slaves or maybe somebody he was trafficking. 

K'laa looked over her handiwork with the bodies before placing a hand on Nile's shoulder. "It is done, we will return to Thyindres." She pulled him to his feet.

A fistful of coins in one hand and a scimitar in the other, Nile slid down the chimney, watching K'laa in case she got hurt. From her back sprouted long, feathered wings. She used them to slow her fall. Nile looked like an idiot with his mouth agape. "Forgot you had wings." He chuckled a little.

She rolled her eyes, moving out of the way when Luke scrambled down the chimney subconsciously. He fell and hit his back, groaning and rubbing his back. "Fuuuck..." He sat up.

Nile and K'laa didn't wait for Luke, they went back to Thyindres and went their separate ways a couple hours before Luke got back. When he did, he went straight to his room and fell asleep the moment he touched his bed.

Nile and K'laa waved goodbye to each other, walking back to their respective homes. Nile opened the door to his hotel room, noticing Clover fast asleep, and crashed next to the teen goblin.

On the outskirts of Thyindres, K'laa found her squat. A rugged, hobo style home that only the poorest would live in. Blankets tied to a tree as covering from wind and rain, backpacks dangling by their straps, and small candles just out of reach of flammable objects.

K'laa flew up into the squat, reclining on a branch cushioned only by wool plucked from a sheep. Sure, it wasn't comfortable, but she was safe and could sleep.

––––

Luke stirred to Candy shoving him awake. "Wake up!" She half hissed. "Arkon's knocked five times!" 

He pushed her back a little, tucking her hair behind her ear so he could see her face. "I'll talk with her soon." He yawned, scratching his itchy head.

She put her hands under his back and shoved him out of bed. He groaned in protest, never actually raising a hand to fight back. He sighed, getting up and brushing his hair.

He wiped the wrinkles out of his shirt, looking to Candy. "What did Arkon even want?" Luke pondered aloud, dragging his bowstring over his violin.

"She wants everyone to introduce themselves because she thinks Clover and I don't know you guys." Candy explained, running her fingers over her ears.

Grunting in annoyance, Luke slung his backpack over his shoulder and threw open the door. Arkon stood on the others side, a blank look on her face, Luke couldn't read her. "Let's go, you're missing breakfast." 

Luke followed Arkon downstairs to the common room, where a flurry of locals were talking over ale. In the northeastern corner, the party ate, K'laa having already been welcomed into the family. In the northwestern corner, a group of strangely milky skinned people laughed and dined with large chalices they clearly brought themselves, Luke recognized all of them.

Sitting next to Nile and Arkon, Luke herfed and made room for Candy to sit. "Who wants to go first?" He blew smoke into the air, indirectly hitting Clover and Arkon with his smoke. The round table felt small and crowded with 6 people all around it.

"Wait, hang up." Luke waved down one of the barmaids, requesting a drink. Took a moment, but a cup full of ale was gently placed in front of him. "Okay go." He said with a sip.

Arkon waved at the table awkwardly, almost like she was shying away. "My name is Arkon Vulktaz, I'm a Paladin for the church of Aondrevis, and I took this job because Ludenoff asked me to." She smiled at Candy, who smiled back nervously.

Luke was next. "Luke Wadi, Bard from the Collage of Dead People, and I smuggle people. Oh and I guess I like money or something." He didn't look anyone in the eye.

Nile scooted closer, clearing his throat to get the party's attention. "I'm Nile Hedrin, I'm a Rouge ninja from The Hagalunz Forest, and I'm a part of the Ominilingasi clan." He glanced at Clover and Luke for a moment. "Oh and I don't traffic people like he does." 

K'laa ran her fingers over the cicadas buzzing and crawling all around her. "I am called K'laa Dendle Rajeev, and I am the sworn guardian for The Swarm." She raised her arms, watching the cicadas turn into butterflies. Her face lit up, a smile larger than life across her face. "I am a Ranger for the Ominilingasi clan. I have known Nile longer than I have known The Swarm."

Clover and Candy both waved at the party. A curious yet excited look came over Candy's face. "What are you all called?" She asked. "Do you have a name? Like a name for people to call you?"

Looking around at everyone's faces that held no answers, Luke took a sip from his cup. "We're the Murder of Crows Candy." He smiled, nodding his head. "The Murder of Crows."

Everyone shrugged off Luke. Arkon seemed deep in thought, K'laa tended to The Swarm quietly, Nile drank water, Clover ate a bowl of oats, and Candy studied a book that Luke gave her. 

Relative silence. Locals laughed and sang songs to each other, K'laa purred to The Swarm like a mother cat to her kittens, and the albino group all talked to each other.

Luke leaned forward and put his head on the table, a mannerism he perfected for when he wanted to listen in on or tune out conversations. **["Have you heard Brother Artemecia? The Red Coats have killed a woodcarver!"] ["It's true Brother Artemecia! They took his body, wife, daughter, and son! Ara ara, these ruffians have no right to steal from usss!"]**

Luke slowly brought his head up, a confused face on his face. He looked to K'laa. "Hey Swarm lady." "K'laa." "Yeah, whatever, you know anything about Red Coats?"

K'laa spat flies toward Luke, which became chinch's when Luke mentioned The Red Coats. "The name is familiar, but we do not know anything. However we know someone who will." She purred. "Ibbl Desserrav, a human with connections to an organization."

Nile, who had been listening, turned to face K'laa. "Wait, which organization? Is it you know?" His face grew with concern. _If K'laa is tracking around with the Zephyr Guild, we're in deep shit._

["The Zephyr Guild is who she works for. My hatred for them continues, but she is a powerful and foolish ally."] K'laa told Nile secretly through Thieve's Can't, a language of deceiving sounds and babbling stupidity. He exclaimed and nodded in understanding.

Standing up, K'laa walked around the table, subtly eyeing down the albino crowd just one table over. Arkon and Clover stood up. "What's going on?" Asked Arkon.

Luke offered Candy his arm. She took his arm and stayed by his side. "We're gonna go on a trip to somebody that'll have info on some people that might just get us some extra money." 

Arkon protested. "What about Ludenoff and Sliver?" She stepped in front of Luke, accidentally bumping into a chair. "They're not ready!"

"I'm ready." Ludenoff's voice sent a spiral of relative silence through the bar. He threw his head back, drinking from his flask. "Sliver's gone, she left after we took the wagon to Gadridch's Supplies, something about her job being over."

His eyes glossed over K'laa before snapping back to her. "Who's she? And why does she have bugs crawling on her?" He walked close to try and swat them off. She snarled at him, recoiling and extending her wings defensively.

"You will not cause harm to The Swarm!" She growled. Wasps buzzed angrily around her, both protecting and ready to attack Ludenoff if needed.

Nile got between the two, putting his hands on K'laa's shoulders cautiously, afraid the wasps would sting him. "Easy, easy." He comforted. "He didn't know, lets explain it."

K'laa explained quickly and roughly before turning away with a huff. Her wings wrapped around her torso like a blanket of protection. 

Arkon sighed, knowing she was outnumbered. "Fine." She mumbled. _If these guys get into trouble, someone has to be there to make sure they don't get hurt._

Finishing breakfast, The Murder of Crows left The Elk's Inn, following K'laa to The Thyindres Miner's Exchange. The Miner's Exchange is nothing more than miners getting their valuables weighed, measured and paid out at a bunch of trading stalls.

"Ibbel Desserrav!" K'laa called, giving her business partner a false smile. "It is in my honor to present you the newest adventuring party to grace Thyindres with their presence. Please welcome The Murder of Crows." She bowed before the other Crows, as though she were in the presence of royalty.

Ibbel, a human woman with the title guild master, scanned The Murder curiously. Her eyes paused for a moment when she saw Luke. Turning her attention to K'laa, Ibbel beckoned her to her feet.

Leaning close to K'laa's ear, Ibbel whispered something quickly before taking a step back and pressing out the wrinkles in her shirt. "Murder of Crows." She deadpanned, seemingly unimpressed with the name. "Who's the leader?"

Blink blink.

Everyone points at Arkon. When she realizes everyone is pointing at her, she rolls her eyes. "Me." She said with a tired sigh. _Why am I not surprised?_

Ibbel nodded, still keeping her eye on Luke, and it looks like he's looking at her too. "Yeah okay, well I'm gonna need you, you, and you to come with me." She pointed at Luke, Ludenoff and K'laa. 

The three looked at each other before following Ibbel away from the other Crows.

Ibbel checked to make sure nobody followed them before giving Luke a feint glare. "You released the dragon, didn't you?" She spat, making Luke chuckle.

Ludenoff stepped closer to K'laa, doing his best to stay out of the way. He leaned close to her and whispered. "How do they know each other?"

"Business partners I imagine. The Zephyr Guild is known well within The Clown's trafficking rings." K'laa answered. "Oh."

Luke shrugged, biting down on his cigar. "She got free herself." He retorted. "She ain't been too naughty right?" He quickly added after seeing Ibbel's angry eyebrows.

Ibbel groaned, deciding it best to change subjects to something more useful in the long game. "Ugh, anyway." She turned to face Ludenoff and K'laa. "I have something you and your Murder could do for some Golquz."

Ludenoff's nose scrunched up. Did he really wanna get caught up in whatever _*business*_ Luke had? Would it be worth it? "What would we be doing?" He asked, deciding to at least hear her out.

Ibbel pointed in the direction of The Elk's Inn. "There's these ruffians that call themselves The Red Coats, and they've been terrorizing Thyindres for weeks. They have a base under Gafrig Manor." She cleared her throat before continuing. "It's on the east edge of town. If you manage to kill the leader of The Red Coats, someone they call Quartered Lice, and bring me anybody who associates with them, I'll pay you."

Luke stepped forward, an interested, greedy look on his face. "How much?"

"100 Golquz." Ibbel responded.

Luke scoffed. "Each? Or as a whole?" He wasn't about to let this gudless brimnan rip him off.

"As a whole, because it's a group effort." Luke opened his mouth to argue, but Ibbel was faster. "And it is not open to negotiations."

Ludenoff eyed Ibbel suspiciously. "Why do you want The Red Coats' leader dead?" He asked, keeping a very close eye on her.

"Who wouldn't want the leader of an evil organization dead?" Ibbel brushed off Ludenoff with nonchalant avoidance. He wouldn't let that happen.

"Someone who is part of an evil organization herself." Ludenoff accused. 

Luke chuckled, which caused Ibbel and K'laa to chuckle too. "Sure sure." Luke also brushed off Ludenoff. 

Having been basically ignored, Ludenoff stepped back and let them talk. It took maybe 20 minutes, but they finally stopped negotiating prices and agreed.

Luke and Ibbel shook hands. "You'll be running them better than Quarter bitch ever could." He told her, making a smile plaster her face.

"Alright, go, get out of here and take care of them." Ibbel giggled a little as they left. Luke was a funny man for sure, always one for the wild side life.

Luke, Ludenoff, and K'laa walked back to the rest of the group. Candy hugged Luke, Clover and Nile were talking quietly (and judging by the amazed look on Clover's face, Nile was telling him a story from his past.), and Arkon walked up to Ludenoff.

"What were they discussing?" She asked quietly, almost like she was worried K'laa or Luke would attack if she spoke too loud.

Ludenoff shrugged a little in defeat. "We're dealing with K'laa's mess, Luke's business, and Nile's enemies I think." He sighed. "Ibbel wants us to go to someone's farm to rest and then go kill someone to help her gain control over Thyindres."

Arkon and Ludenoff shared a moment of 'We are the only two here who don't have gray morals, and we're surrounded by idiots.' before picking up their feet and following the other Crows.


End file.
